The car is now in a rather sorry state.    It was never in great condition, but it did make the drive back from Canberra to Sydney after the Flynn auction.  Not bad for such a cheap car.    It looks like the bonnet has been used as an outdoor painting bench!

The engine is being kept in reserve for the restoration, but the owner will probably sell the DG automatic gearbox as the restoration projects are all manual/overdrive.    It is a shame to see such a rare car parted out, but at the same time this one very rough car is being sacrificed to get three very nice ones back on the road.   This P5 coupe parts car was originally stone grey with a red interior.   When I bought the car it has a poor quality vinyl roof that is unlikely to be factory.

The post Rover P5 Coupe parts car update appeared first on Classic Jalopy.

The new owner is a friend of mine who is restoring the three Rover P5 cars.   A Rover parts car will really help along these restorations.   Prior to this car he also parted out a P5 Saloon.

He is of the firm view that the P5 3 liter is the far superior car to the v8 powered P5B.   The main reasons he quotes for this are:

• The cars were far better built by the Rover Company as compared to British Leyland.
• The Borg Warner 35 gearbox was not adequate for the weight of the vehicle.
• The front suspension was not updated for the much lighter Aluminium v8 giving a choppy ride.

He is a fan of the Rover v8 in the 3500S P6 model, but less so in the P5.

I’ve stopped by the workshop a couple of times since selling the car to see the progress of the P5 restoration.   As the restorations progress, my old car is further stripped for valuable parts.   I stopped by today and helped remove two of the window regulators.

The first photo below shows the car in late 2017, just after I sold it.

I went back in September 2018 and the stripping process had started with some of the front of the car removed, as well as work done on the interior to remove pieces such as the instrument cluster, door cards etc.

Today a lot more progress had been made, with the entire interior gutted, one of the window regulator removed, back wheels and many more.

Next step will be to remove the DG gearbox.     It will not be required for the restorations as they are all Manual/Overdrive, so will be put up for sale.   The DG is an interesting unit.  It’s a big strong gearbox, of American design.  It is a two speed box, with a locking torque converter to give three effective ratios.   A locking torque converter was quite advanced for the time, with many other manufacturers not introducing this until the 90s or 2000s.

I expect in a couple of months all usable bits will be harvested and the shell will be sold for scrap metal.  The should coincide with the return to the road for at least one of the P5 coupes.

The post Rover parts car – my old P5 appeared first on Classic Jalopy.

I took the car on what is more than likely its very last drive on public roads.  A 50km run across Sydney in peak traffic.   The car ran OK, although the transmission was a bit temperamental and the ignition key chose a great time to stop working.  Luckily the Rover P5 Coupe has provision for a starting handle!  I’m sure it has been a long time that other motorists at a service station saw somebody crank starting a car after refuelling.

The new owner has 5 other Rovers on the premises:

• 1963 Rover P5 MKIIa Coupe with manual transmission in Admiralty Blue.
• 1965 Rover P5 MKIIc Coupe originally automatic, now converted to manual in Admiralty Blue.
• 1966 Rover P5 MKIII Coupe, originally automatic,now converted to manual in Almond/Cream two tone.
• 197x Rover 3500 Parts car.
• 197x Rover 3500S under restoration

The post Last drive of my $ 230 Rover P5 Coupe appeared first on Classic Jalopy.

One feature unique to the P5 over the P5B is that it has provision for a starting handle.   I’ve never started a car using a starting handle, despite having two so equipped.  (The DS and the Traction).     Even though the car was cold and had not run for a few weeks, it started fairly easy (after only a couple of tries) on the handle.   Strike one item off my bucket list!

I raised the car on the hoist and the first thing I noticed was that the car has a complete exhaust system in stainless steel that looks brand new.

The whole drive train also looks very clean.   So my guess was that it was removed for work at some point.   I have no records to show what was done, but the engine runs very well and key components like the steering box, brake master cylinder and booster look like they have been rebuilt or replaced.

Conversely, as I experienced driving it back, the front end does need work.   The bushings look old, and the dust covers are split/missing on various linkages and so on.   The shock absorbers are also fairly old.    The car also has 165 tyres on the front which I don’t think are correct.   I understand the correct size is 185.   The tyres have reasonable tread but are old.

Surprisingly though, after all that work, no attempt was made to fix the rust in the sills.   This to me would have been the first step before any mechanical work was attempted.   But I guess Dr Flynn wanted his cars in good running order and the condition of the body work was not so important to him.

In summary, despite this cars looks, it has had extensive work mechanically.   It is certainly fixable, but realistically it is probably more of a parts car than one that will get a restoration.    I still plan to sell this P5 Coupe.

The post P5 Coupe – Further evaluation appeared first on Classic Jalopy.

There was a fair amount of interest right around Australia and the Auctioneers did a good job of generating excitement.   Therefore the earlier and better lots sold for good prices and in my view probably above market.    The later lots that were in poor condition or basically parts cars sold for next to nothing.    Most of the cars were registered previously on numeric plates that were worth orders of magnitude more than the cars.   These were being auctioned off separately.

The lot started off with a couple of Cadillacs and a Buick with the best one fetching $41,000 and the other two mid teens.    Then the Flynn Collection Auction turned to the rovers.

In my view, the best rover there was the blue P5B Coupe.   It has been the personal car of the late Dr’s mother and felt like a good original car that was a little tired.   Fitted with an aftermarket sunroof the engine sounded good and the car looked nice from a couple of meters, but closer up there were various dents, scratches and so on.  The car had clearly spent a lot of time in the sun as the door rubbers had actually melted and the leather at the top of the seats felt like cardboard.    In the end it sold for $14,000 to an online bidder which is not surprising as it was better in the photos than it was in the flesh.  The only over rover to hit the $10,000 was another P5B Coupe.     From there, most of the better P5s sold for around $2-$5,000, The better P4s from $1-$4,000 and the P6’s from $500-$1200.   A couple of nicer cars beat these ranges and many P6’s sold for less than $100 in the end.   At the end of the day the very best of the cars were in fair condition only, and the prices reflected that. It was also evident that the cars went to a wide variety of people, I captured the bidder numbers below to illustrate how many different people walked away with a car.  The Flynn collection auction certainly dispersed the collection.

The next day was the parts, and there were some real bargains to be had.   For example a whole pallet of P5 seats for about $50, a rebuilt Rover v8 for around $100, various wheels, workshop supplies and so on.   You needed to but the parts by the pallet so the cost per part was very low.    Whole shelves of spares (e.g. Distributor caps) also went for low prices.

All in all it was an interesting experience to go and see this Auction.  I hope many of the parts and scrap cars can be used to keep good cars on the road and they don’t end up op the scrap heap.  I wonder what the late Dr Flynn would have thought of the whole thing?

Auction Results:

Lot 1: 1935 Cadillac 38, $41,000, Online
Lot 2: Buick 40, $15,000, Bidder 555
Lot 3: 1939 Cadillac 39, $17,000, Bidder 557
Lot 4: 1970 Rover P5B Coupe Blue, $14,000, Online
Lot 5: 1976 P6 3500 Red, $2,000, 557  (This car looked good from 2-3 meters but up closer was not so great)
Lot 6: 1949 P4-75 Cyclops, $3,000, 571 (This was probably the nicest Cyclops there)
Lot 7: 1971 Rover P6 3500 White, 572
Lot 8: 1957 Rover P4-105R Brown, $4,000, 606 (This was one of a number of Roverdrive cars for sale)
Lot 9: 1964 P5 3 Liter MKII Sedan Grey, $2200, 567 (Apparently this is the one the Dr used the most)
Lot 10: 1969 P5B Sedan Green, with re-trimmed interior, (I didn’t catch this one but it sold for good money)
Lot 11: 1967 Rover P5-3 Liter MKIII Coupe White, $6000, Online
Lot 12: 1968 Rover P5B Coupe Grey, $10,000, 576
Lot 13: 1968 Rover P5B Sedan White, $2,000, 545
Lot 14: 1966 Rover P5 3 Liter MKIII Coupe, Green, 558 (This was one of the best value buys of the night)
Lot 15: 1972 Rover P6 3500 Cream, $3,000, 557
Lot 16: 1959 Rover P5 MKI Sedan Manual Black, $4,000, 538
Lot 17: 1958 Rover P4-105R Blue, $700, 526
Lot 18: 1968 Rover P5B Sedan Green, $200, Online (another good value buy)
Lot 19: 1972 Rover P6 3500 Yellow, $1400, 575
Lot 20: 1962 Rover P5 3 Liter MKII Sedan, $350, 576
Lot 21: 1958 Rover P4-105S Brown, $2,100, 518
Lot 22: 1968 Rover P5B Sedan, $3600
Lot 23: 1971 Rover P6 2000 Yellow, $1,000, 558
Lot 24: 1968 Rover P5 Sedan, $600
Lot 25: 1957 Rover P4-105S Grey, $2000, 589
Lot 26: 1969 Rover P5B Sedan Blue, $1300, 530
Lot 27: 1972 Rover P6 3500 Yellow, $500, 514
Lot 28: 1974 Rover P6 3500 Brown, $800, 581
Lot 29: 1958 Rover P4-105 Black. $4,500, 610
Lot 30: 1971 Rover P6 2000TC, $500, 561
Lot 31: 1962 Rover P4-110 Grey, $900, 542
Lot 32: 1971 Rover P6-2000TC White, $750, 552
Lot 33: 1970 Rover P5B Coupe Grey, $7500, 583
Lot 34: 1971 Rover P6 3500 Yellow, $1100
Lot 35: 1974 Rover P6 3500 Blue, $700, Online
Lot 36: 1972 Rover P6 3500 Yellow, $?
Lot 37: 1976 Rover P6 3500 White, $800, Online
Lot 38: 1969 Rover P5B Sedan, $2300, Online
Lot 39: 1972 Rover P6-3500S Yellow, $1600, 605
Lot 40: 1968 Rover P5B Coupe White, $6800, 594
Lot 41: 1965 Rover P5 3 Liter Sedan Maroon, $1600
Lot 42: 1971 Rover P6 3500 Brown, $500, 576
Lot 43: 1970 Rover P5B Coupe Grey, $4700, 567
Lot 44: 1955 Rover P4-75 Sedan, $2100, 596
Lot 45: 1960 Rover P5 3 Liter MKI Sedan Dark Green, $500, 519
Lot 46: 1969 Rover P6 3500 Sedan Brown, $300, 526
Lot 47: 1956 Rover P4-90 Sedan Black, $600
Lot 48: 1960 Rover P5 Sedan MKI Blue, $600, 622
Lot 49: 1969 Rover P6-2000TC White, $1600, 613
Lot 50: 1963 Rover P4-95 Blue, $500, 575
Lot 51: 1969 Rover P6 2000TC Cream, $900
Lot 52: 1955 Rover P4-90 Sedan Black, $500, 620
Lot 53: 1974 Rover P6 3500S Brown, $100, 541
Lot 54: 1969 Rover P5B Sedan White, $2250, 573
Lot 55: Rover P6 2000 White, $250, 546
Lot 56: 1954 Rover P4-90 Black, $500, 612
Lot 57: 1968 Rover P5B Sedan White, $1300, 530
Lot 58: 1962 Rover P5 3 Liter MKII Sedan Light Grey, $100, 605
Lot 59: 1962 Rover P5 3 Liter MKI Sedan Light Grey, $900, 551
Lot 60: 1974 Rover P6 3500S White, $1100, 582
Lot 61: 1958 Rover P4-105S Cream
Lot 62: 1973 Rover P6-3500S Green, $1000
Lot 63: 1965 Rover P5 3 Liter Sedan Grey, $850 (this one was in quite good condition for the price)
Lot 64: 1968 Rover P5B Sedan, $1850
Lot 65: 1971 Rover P6 3500 White, $300, 619
Lot 66: 1973 Rover P6-3500S Yellow, $1100, 546
Lot 67: 1971 Rover P6 3500, $350, 537
Lot 68: 1974 Rover 3500S, $1100
Lot 69: 1974 Rover P6 2000 TC, $100
Lot 70: 1969 Rover P5 3.5 Sedan Green, $1000, 530
Lot 71: 1970 Rover P5B Grey
Lot 72: 1974 Rover P6 3500S White, $700, 533
Lot 73: 1962 Rover P4-100 White, $200, 592
Lot 74: 1976 Rover P6 3500 Orange, $100
Lot 75: 1968 Rover P5B Green, $1200, 525
Lot 76: 1969 Rover P6 3500 White, $50, 595
Lot 77: 1959 Rover P5 MKI Blue, $400, 595
Lot 78: 1958 Rover P4-105R Beige, $300, 520
Lot 79: 1957 Rover P4-105R Grey, $600, 617
Lot 80: 1970 Rover P5B Sedan white, $4400, Online
Lot 81: 1951 Rover P4-75 Cyclops, $400
Lot 82: 1954 Rover P4-90 Green, $100, 592
Lot 83: 1960 Rover P5 MKI Sedan, $100?
Lot 84: 1973 Rover P6 3500S, $500, 595
Lot 85: 1951 Rover P4-75 Cyclops, Beige
Lot 86: 1969 Rover 3.5 Blue, $100, 532
Lot 87: 1962 Rover P4-100 Green
Lot 88: 1971 Rover P6-3500 Blue, $100, 558
Lot 89: 1951 Rover P4-75 Cyclops Black, $50, 595
Lot 90: 1966 Rover P5 MKIII Coupe White, $50
Lot 91: 1963 Rover P5 MKII Coupe Grey, $350
Lot 92: 1950 Rover P4-75 Green, $50
Lot 93: 1960 Rover P5 3 Litre Sedan, $50, 595
Lot 94: Rover P5B Sedan Grey, $50, 545
Lot 95: 1957 Rover P4-105R Green, $50
Lot 96: 1960 Rover P4-95 Sedan Black, $50, 533
Lot 97: 1955 Rover P4-90 Black, $50, 526
Lot 98: 1960 Rover P5 3 Liter Blue/Black, $50, 548
Lot 99: 1971 Rover P5B Sedan Maroon, $300, 551
Lot 100: 1960 Rover P5 3 Liter Sedan, $50, 595
Lot 101: 1972 Rover P5 3500S white
Lot 102: 1963 Rover MKII Coupe Green, $200, 621
Lot 103: 1960 Rover P5 3 Liter Sedan Blue, $500
Lot 104: 1958 Rover P4-105R, $20
Lot 105: 1970 Rover P5B Coupe Blue, $900
Lot 106: 1969 Rover P6 2000TC, $250, 552
Lot 107: 1964 Rover P5 3 Liter MKII Sedan Manual, $20
Lot 108: 1968 Rover P5B Sedan Maroon, $100, 530
Lot 109: 1968 Rover P5B Sedan, $50
Lot 110: 1975 Rover P6 3500 White, $50
Lot 111: 1975 Rover P6 3500 Yellow, $50
Lot 112: 1963 Rover P5 3 Liter Sedan, $20
Lot 113: 1959 Rover P4-105R Grey, $70
Lot 114: 1965 Rover P5 3 Liter MKII Sedan Green
Lot 115: 1970 Rover P6 2000 TC Beige
Lot 116: 1961 Rover P5 3 Liter Sedan Green
Lot 117: 1961 Rover P4-100 Black, $175
Lot 118: 1951 Rover P4-75 Cyclops Black
Lot 119: 1973 Rover P6 3500 White, $25
Lot 120: 1950 Rover P4-75 Cyclops Grey, $175, 536
Lot 121: 1967 Rover P6 2000 White, $10, 678
Lot 122: 1950 Rover P4-75 Cyclops Grey, $450, 561
Lot 123: 1960 Rover P5 3 Liter Sedan Grey, $10, 612
Lot 124: 1957 Rover P4-90 Blue, $20, 534
Lot 125: 1969 Rover P5B, $650, Online
Lot 126: 1968 Rover P5B Maroon, $350, 584
Lot 127: 1955 Rover P4-90 White, $125
Lot 128: 1966 Rover P6 2000 White
Lot 129: 1958 Rover P4-105R
Lot 130: 1959 Rover P5 3 Liter Sedan Grey, $20?
Lot 131: 1972 Rover P6 2000TC White, $180
Lot 132: 1960 Rover P4-100 Grey
Lot 133: 1974 Rover P6 3500 White, $20
Lot 134: 1965 Rover P5 3 Liter MKII Grey, $230
Lot 135: 1961 Rover P4-100 Grey
Lot 136: 1969 Rover P6 3500 Brown
Lot 137: 1967 Rover P5 Sedan White
Lot 138: 1974 Rover P6 3500
Lot 139: 1968 Rover P5B Coupe Purple, $3100
Lot 140: 1969 Rover 3500, $20
Lot 141: 1957 Rover P4-105R Grey, $700
Lot 142: 1966 Rover P5 3 Liter MKIII Coupe
Lot 143: 1962 Rover P5 Sedan Dark Grey

The post The Flynn Collection Auction appeared first on Classic Jalopy.

The worst mishap I faced was the boot lid coming open along the way – my worries I may have lost my spares out the back were unfounded, it just needed closing and I was on my way.    The car performed well – the 3 liter straight six is incredibly smooth and the car would make a great freeway cruiser.    As it was about 33c on the day, the car was happiest at about 95km/h – I think the radiator needs boiling out as it runs very cool around town.     At that speed it would sit about 3/4 of the way up the normal zone on the (still working) temperature gauge. This Rover is the first old British car I’ve owned with a working clock that keeps accurate time!

The old DG gearbox sure puts out a lot of heat – I rather stupidly placed a bottle of cold water between the seat and the transmission tunnel and when I came to drink from it later on it was hot like a cup of tea!

The worst thing about the car was the condition of anything made of rubber that had not been replaced (fuel hoses looked quite new for example).   The suspension was pretty bad and I suspect the rubber is pretty much non existent.   You could feel the ultra light steering, but with all bushings rotted it was rather twitchy.     Despite all this you could see what nice cruising cars these would be.   The engine is super smooth and the interior is a very nice place to be.     I plan to sell this car as I don’t have the time to put it right, but perhaps one day I will buy another P5.  One where a lot more of the work has been done.

The post Rover P5 cheap car challenge appeared first on Classic Jalopy.

The auction people put in a few litres and it started right up.    It seemed to settle down into a smooth idle and it wasn’t smoking when given a few revs.     The mechanic who had worked for the old Dr said that the car was previously registered and the engine and gearbox seemed in good health, although the car was not driven a whole lot.

I secured an unregistered vehicle permit and took to the streets.    The car spluttered and wouldn’t go up and down hills.   But 10l of fresh fuel solved that and once I turned it off ‘reserve’ fuel it ran quite well.     I had a 30 minute drive to my relatives house in Canberra and despite the 30 degree heat the car never ventured out of the normal zone on the temperature gauge.  The car is a Rover P5 MKII Coupe, so it has the weslake head with the DG gearbox.   The unregistered vehicle permit was $25 for each day, and I also took out a refundable 3rd party property damage insurance polcy.

The main thing I am concerned about is the age of the radiator hose so I plan on buying some generic hose to take in the car on the drive back to Sydney.   I was pleasantly surprised with this car, especially the engine and gearbox.

The post First drive of the Rover P5 MKII Coupe appeared first on Classic Jalopy.

This car is equipped with the 3 liter six.   Most collectors prefer the 8, but the six has its fans due to its refinement.  It is much smoother, and some would regard more in character with the car.    The sixes were also built when Rover was an independent company and are better built than the 8s which came out under BL.

The nice coupes went for good money but this one isn’t as nice and so went rather cheap. I paid $230 for the car so you can imagine the condition.  Not as cheap as some P6’s that were going for $50 or less.

The poor car couldn’t even start for its turn at the auction.  It was later discovered that the car was just out of fuel.

As the car is in Canberra, tomorrow I need to assess if it can make it back to my relatives house in Canberra.  From there, can it make the journey back to Sydney under its own steam?

The drive back may end up like one of the those Top Gear challenges, but not the ones where they have reliable cars!

The post The $ 230 Rover P5 MKII Coupe appeared first on Classic Jalopy.